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Fisheries Agency provides training on boat hygiene

Penghu County officials last week launched a program to educate fishing boat captains on how to improve sanitation and hygiene on their boats in a bid to meet EU regulations and improve the competitiveness of the nation's fish exports.

A total of 114 fishing captains participated in a four-hour class conducted by officials from the Council of Agriculture's Fisheries Agency, said Chao Jung-li (趙榮利), an official at the Penghu County Agriculture and Fisheries Bureau.

Chao said that the council requires skippers who export fishery products to the EU and who apply for a sanitary assessment certificate should first receive at least four hours of training provided by the Fisheries Agency.

The curriculum includes EU import regulations on sanitary measures for fishery products, sanitary assessment items and standards and practices for hygienic management of fishery products, Chao said.

The regulations came into force on Jan. 1 and require that fishing vessel captains complete the course and receive a certificate before the boats can be certified for fishery export to the EU, Chao said.

The bureau launched the program to help captains obtain the certificate and pave the way for exports of fishery products, he said.

Penghu's fishery exports to the EU totaled 617 tonnes last year. The products were mainly flying fish roe and squid rolls, which are usually harvested in summer.

Chao said the bureau held the courses in winter, ahead of exports in the peak season.

As most EU members are developed countries, customers tend to pay more attention to product quality, prompting the EU to implement stricter sanitary measures for imports, Chao said.

EU officials will visit Taiwan in April or May to conduct field inspections, he said.
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